A Time for Peace
by The Panzer Lord
Summary: The Star Union of Ararat has known five hundred years of peace with the Melconians and other Humans, as well as peace with other species, since its creation by the Bolo known as Shiva. Now, a new species threatens this peace; the reptilian Alkultani. Basically, a sequel to A Time to Kill.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: I do not own anything Bolo except for seven books. The Bolo Series was originally by Keith Laumer (who's dead). The short story A Time to Kill was written by good ole' David Weber. Which means Shiva, the Star Union, and cool prologue "written by" that fello with the last name Cleary are ALL his. Good job, Weber. You're more creative than me because you made up all those characters, while I'm making up only two to three! Oh, and the race Alkultani is mine. Weber would never use such an over-used alien template such as space lizards. So thanks for reading this Bolo story I just came up with in ten minutes.**

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_Prologue_

Five hundred T-years of peace have allowed the Star Union of Ararat to flourish, and with it, the rest of the Galaxy's Humans and Melconians alike. Our allies, too, have contributed greatly to the centuries of peace bestowed upon us. The New Republic, by itself, has already united two-thirds of the independent states that rose from the ashes of the Concordiat during the Long Night.

Colonization and expansion have increased, and we have already some 75% of old Concordiat territory recovered. Some planets, of course, will never be recovered, and they will be designated as memorials to the innocent lives lost to the butchery and atrocity that was the Final War. New species have been found, and through the diplomacy of the Speaker Emeritus of the Union Parliament, Bolo XXXIII/D-1097-SHV, we have become allies with them and have increased trade.

Not all new species have responded to our wish for friendship, and many remain silent to our requests. We have learned from the tragedy of the Final War, however, to exercise patience to those who have yet to respond, and allow them to make their decisions before we make ours.

With every great peace, though, comes eventually a war. The Alkultani, an advanced reptilian race, have more recently engaged in increasingly hostile behaviors. Behind the border, the Alkultani have increased their fleet size by 50%, and have amassed more troops on the border world than they previously had, before encountering the Star Union.

Our own forces remain on alert, and our worlds have been reinforced with better defenses. Policy towards the Alkultani aggression will ensure that we do not attack unless attacked first, and that if we are attacked, our forces will be enough to repel it.

We hope, with all our hearts, that our time of peace is not shattered

Jane A. Cleary, Ph.D

Excerpt from _Peace be With You_

Cerberus Books, Ararat, 4330

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**And if you didn't guess, this is my little version of what happens after A Time to Kill. I'll leave you guys to scratch your heads over this for a bit, puzzling over what magical plasma will spew out of my Story Hellbore next. Then the real story begins.**


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: HAHAHA...sorry guys I didn't get this out sooner. School started...and stuff. Anyway...I don't own anything Bolo. Except for my own characters. And if Lazarus was for sale, I'd buy him. So I hope you guys enjoy the second installment of my tanktastic FanFic series.

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Sophie Ernst sighed with impatience. It wasn't every day you had to write an essay in a school wide competition, just to get accepted into a survey group, much less one with REAL paper, instead of on a data slab. In some ways, it would pay off. Only the best of the best could go on survey missions for the Star Union, but this survey was special. Instead of looking for new and exciting habitable worlds, they would be looking to reclaim an old one. Well, an old star system to be exact. It had been known as Matterhorn before the Final War, and even its name had almost been lost during the Long Night. Other than its name and location, no one knew a lot about it. Even the Speaker Emeritus no longer could provide data on that long lost system. And that's why they needed a survey team.

Just the very thought sent excitement through Sophie. Until, she realized, she had yet to complete the actual essay, and was running out of time to finish. She began to scribble out the conclusion in a desperate and almost futile race to beat the clock, and as the last sentence was finished, the bell sounded to signify the end of school. She snagged her bag and handed in her essay as she rushed hurriedly out the door. She had band practice after this.

She was in such a hurry, she almost plowed into the grey-furred bipedal canine she called "friend".

"Sorry Rakar!" she skidded to a stop to avoid a head-on collision.

The slightly shorter Melconian bared his teeth in a challenge-grin. "Someone's in a hurry. Band practice?"

"Yep. And Mrs. Stegson is going to have a fit if I'm not there on time again!"

"Sounds rough…" He gave her a sympathetic look and drew his ears back a bit, "Anyway, how do you think you did on the essay? I think I rocked it personally!"

Sophie rolled her eyes and grinned. "You're very humble too. I think I did okay. If I have to see another essay about the principles of peace, I'm going to vomit rainbows and doves."

Rakar laughed. "Who needs to be humble when they have dazzlingly handsome looks? I feel your pain about the repetitiveness though. It's too sweet and sugary almost. But hey….who's going to argue with something Speaker Emeritus encourages?"

"Good point, Rakar. No one that I know…" She checked her watch. "Crap! Sorry Rakar, I have to go. Catch up with ya later!"

After waving him goodbye, she hurried up to the band room, which was inconveniently off the beaten path. After arriving just on time, she set up her area, and got her clarinet ready.

_# $%*)&^%...*^&8...((*...REB* ...REBOOT INITIATED…..RUNNING DIAGNOSTICS…._

_Main Memory: 85% of base capacity_

_Main Armament: 95% of base capacity_

_Secondary and Tertiary Armaments: 56% of base capacity_

_Cold Fusion Reactor: 95% efficiency_

_Drive Train: 63% of base capacity_

_…..all other diagnostics incomplete….anomaly in Damage Control Systems._

_ This is unacceptable for a Unit of the Line to operate so poorly after reawakening from repair. I am Unit XXXIII/D-4990-TDA of the Line, and I am proud of my once-pristine state. I feel slight embarrassment of my condition, and burn with shame that the techs that repaired me must see my pitiful condition. Once DCS completes the reawakening procedure, it returns control of all sensors before returning to repair my remaining systems. As I begin to scan the data collected from the sensors, I discover a startling revelation—there _are_ no techs. In fact, I am far from being in a maintenance depot at all. The sole remaining conclusion is that DCS acted on its own behalf…and performed better than ever expected._

_ As I analyze my surroundings, I probe the planet I am on for any signs of life. There are none. There is also a notable amount of radiation, as well as traces of chemicals left behind from a Melconian world burner. If the astronomical data in my memory is still accurate, I am located on the capital world of the Matterhorn System, Riordahn. Matterhorn was the site of great strategic importance to the Concordiat and the Melconian Empire alike. That was why my battalion, 7__th__ Battalion of the Final Dinachrome Brigade, was shipped here for a last, desperate defense of this sector. It is also why I read no life signs on the entire planet; not a single organism survived the Melconian planetary assault._

_ The increasing ache within me, the empty spaces of the TSDS net and the space where my commander once shared my consciousness, invokes another train of thought…has the Concordiat lost? And if it has, where are the surviving Humans, if any? I fear the worst, and my shame and guilt increase a thousand-fold. My brothers and sisters and I have been defeated, and I feel and mourn that failure more than ever, caused by the possibility of total Human annihilation. We have failed to protect the ones we are bound to, to the death and beyond._

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There it is again folks. The trademark survivor's guilt known to plague the Bolo series. And another cliff-hangar. Guys, I love feed-back. If you want something to happen in the story, have any suggestions to make it more likable, or want to see maybe YOUR RP character or YOUR persona end up as a character, just PM me. I'd love to have more author/audience interaction.


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